US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin. [AFP=연합뉴스]
The Joe Biden administration is pushing to make it mandatory for all military personnel to be vaccinated against the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19).
U.S. defense to make vaccine mandatory by mid-September
Vaccination order immediately after FDA approval
If it is not approved, a special request is made to the President.
73% of U.S. military personnel have received at least one dose in 1.3 million
Except for the 73% of the US military who have been vaccinated at least once, it plans to issue an inoculation order to those who are not vaccinated. If you refuse to do so, you will face punishment or dishonorable discharge, US media reported.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in a memo sent to the entire military on the 9th (local time) that “we plan to require orders for all troops to be vaccinated against COVID-19 by mid-September,” urging each service to start preparing for compulsory vaccination. The Washington Post (WP) reported that.
Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said in a press briefing that if the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) formally approves Pfizer-BioNtech’s COVID-19 vaccine before September, Secretary of State Austin will have the authority to request the vaccine immediately.
If the FDA does not formally approve the Pfizer vaccine by this time, Secretary Austin plans to obtain a presidential waiver from President Biden to make it mandatory.
“I strongly support Secretary of State Austin’s plan to add a COVID-19 vaccine to the list of immunizations needed for military personnel by mid-September at the latest,” Biden said in a statement. The Ministry of National Defense has already implemented mandatory vaccination for 17 vaccines.
Experts predicted that the FDA will make a decision by the end of this month or next month at the latest if it gets official approval for the Pfizer vaccine. Pfizer’s vaccine began to be administered in the United States in December last year after receiving an emergency use authorization (EUA) from the FDA.
The reason why the Ministry of National Defense has been active in vaccination is because it has been analyzed that the recently spreading delta mutation affects the health of soldiers and military readiness. A spokesperson for Kirby said the spread of delta mutations was a decisive factor in the decision.
“We are still at war,” Biden said in a statement.
According to the U.S. military, 73% of active-duty military personnel have had at least one vaccination, and 62% have been vaccinated, NPR reported.
Although the Ministry of National Defense did not mention the disposition for soldiers who refuse to be vaccinated, most experts point out that refusal to vaccinate is equivalent to disobeying orders and can be punished according to the military law.
Punishment is expected to vary from reprimand to detention, pay reduction or suspension to disgraceful discharge, Politico said. Vaccine refusals may record their disobedience to orders on their personnel record card, which may affect promotion in the future.
If the FDA doesn’t give formal approval before next month, there’s likely to be a court battle over enforcing a vaccine with presidential powers.
Experts point to the anthrax vaccine case as a case in which the vaccine was compulsorily vaccinated during the emergency use approval stage. The military started vaccinating the anthrax vaccine in 1998, which was approved only for emergency use, but it was not until 2002 that it was officially approved.
In a lawsuit filed by an air force against the state for refusing to vaccinate against anthrax, a federal court of appeals ruled in favor of the government on the ground that it knowingly disobeyed a lawful order issued by its superior.
In another lawsuit, the court issued an order banning soldiers from getting vaccinated against anthrax, ultimately stating that the military could not force soldiers to get vaccinated.
Washington = Correspondent Park Hyun-young park.hyunyoung@joongang.co.kr
